Police 'poster girl' goes public after quitting over mounting pressure and stress

She was the ‘poster girl’ for one of the country’s largest police forces; picked out to promote the key role of women officers in fighting crime and keeping people safe.

But despite Laura Beal’s face appearing on police posters across Devon and Cornwall and on the cover of the force’s own annual report she has now quit her job in the most public way possible.

Ms Beal says she has been left disillusioned and suffering stress and anxiety as a result of the increasing demands of the job.

But rather than quietly handing in her notice she took the unusual decision of publishing her letter of resignation on Facebook, for all the world to see.

Her decision to go public - breaking the code of silence that normally governs the police - has forced her bosses to admit their officers are “feeling the strain” of maintaining law and order.

In her letter of resignation to Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer, Ms Beal, who served with the West Country force for 13 years, claimed she was frequently left to cover Mid Devon with just one other officer

She says her treatment in the organisation has caused her to succumb to anxiety, depression and stress and in a damning conclusion states: “I am leaving before this job kills me both physically and mentally.”

HM Inspectorate of Constabulary has issued an unprecedented warning about the shortage of detectives and investigators, saying it amounted to a "national crisis".

Ms Beal, who joined the force in 2004 at the age of 19, said: "[Devon & Cornwall Police] staff are not coping and are suffering because there is no one looking out for them.

"Please take it from someone who has been personally affected and has been so low she has wondered what the point of it all is and only through her friends and family been able to see that there is more to life than Policing.

"Front line response is where you need to focus your time and money. This is where the buck stops."

Ms Beal, from Exeter, has received dozens of messages of support on social media, including those of other police officers, and her letter has been shared and ‘liked’ more than 1,000 times.

In it she criticises Devon and Cornwall for its response to the crisis in police ranks.

"I could see the job I loved and the people I respect get ruined because of an organisation that puts its employees last,” she said.

"I know it's personal but I thought I'd share my resignation letter so you all know what this means to me and that it's not been an easy decision. "

Ms Beal said she followed her father into the police and was proud to do so, but she blamed “the total lack of support both governmental and from the Chief Officer Group” for robbing her of her faith in the job she loved.

“I would rather take the massive pay cut and quit than spend one day longer in a job that is making me ill,” she said.

Ms Beal, who has now started her own dog pampering and grooming firm, says she is experienced officers are being replaced by new recruits with few people skills.

She adds: “We are more like a business now in how we function in relation to finance and 'customer' relations, yet we are so far behind on employee rights.”

Her letter has led to an admission by senior officers that the pressure of coping with increasing demands is leaving its toll on junior ranks.

However it is understood there is anger at Ms Beal’s decision to go public with her complaints.

“Being a police officer is not easy. We do hear concerns from officers and staff and recognise where they are feeling the strain. We acknowledge that these are issues undoubtedly have an impact on staff wellbeing."

He added: “I would like to formally thank PC Beal for her loyal service, hearing of an officer resigning is sad, particularly when this is done so publicly.”

Mr Colwell said the welfare of officers was a priority for Devon and Cornwall Police, which runs a peer support network, a counselling service and programme developed by the mental health charity Mind, to help them cope with stress.

He added that the force’s chief constable had last month announced that an extra 100 additional police officers were to be recruited for street patrols and local policing, as well as as additional 50 criminal investigators and 30 online record takers, bringing the total number back up to 3,000.